Purpose: The present study aims to tackle SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) managers' awareness of coopetition benefits underpinning the process of knowledge sharing with a view to achieve innovative performance. The scrutiny of coopetition is placed within the context of SMEs strategic networks, which foster a fertile ground for competitive knowledge sharing and direct collaboration among members.Design/methodology/approach: In total, 102 top managers and business owners of European steel SMEs were questioned regarding various issues related to coopetition, knowledge, collaboration and innovative performance strategies. The collected data were analyzed via the technique of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).Findings: The obtained values confirm that intense competition in the field stimulates SMEs to become aware of the benefits of coopetition. This awareness directly influences the innovative performance of the SMEs, as well as their interest in competitive knowledge sharing and their willingness to engage in direct collaboration. Direct collaboration catalyzes more intense competitive knowledge sharing at the inter-unit level whereas both direct collaboration and competitive knowledge sharing lead to better innovative performance in the case of the studied steel SMEs.Research limitations/implications: A key theoretical contribution resides in revealing the influence of manifold factors in the overall equation of innovative performance, integrating competition, coopetition and knowledge sharing as antecedents.Originality/value: The research advances a phenomenological view on SMEs networks in their strategy to leverage competitive knowledge and enhance system-driven innovation.

The current study aims to explore the mediating role of knowledge-sharing between international informal business networks and organizational performance. Emphasis is laid on a context-driven perspective, namely the internationalization of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Central and East Europe (CEE). To that end, an online questionnaire-based survey was conducted with 111 managers of CEE SMEs operating in different trade branches. The findings have shown that 46.6% of the variance in organizational performance is explained by the proposed model while 38.9% of the variance in the knowledge sharing process is explained by the affiliation of CEE SMEs to international informal business networks. The results have both theoretical and practical implications, supporting the imperative to further study the phenomena apposite to CEE region as a compelling research laboratory for multidimensional organizational idiosyncrasies.

Purpose: This article explores the connections between the entrepreneur's global mindset and entrepreneurial motivation in the quest for determining the underlying relationships among these constructs. The aim of the study resides in the advancement of various entrepreneurial profiles which imply specific configurations of the global mindset and motivational drivers, by also covering their correlations with the business outcomes. Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected in 2022 from over 100 entrepreneurs operating in the Romanian SMEs sector, using a questionnaire-based survey. Findings: The results posit that at least three statistically relevant clusters can be observed in the studied population, stemming from the particularities of the entrepreneurs' global mindset. The findings reveal that the levels of development of the entrepreneur's social capital, psychological capital and intellectual capital are linked to different entrepreneurial motivations and impact the company in specific manners. Practical implications: The research offers useful cues to the entrepreneurs for identifying prospective partners for their local or cross-border operations. Originality/value: The results foster a new topical framework for discussion on the motivational configurations of entrepreneurs and the global mindset.

As the "backbone of the economy," small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are key players in the dynamics of local, regional, and global markets, and are often obliged to provide timely responses to the increasingly fierce cross-border competition. However, SMEs internationalisation has temporarily been subject to a wait-and-see policy under the numerous uncertainties and global systemic disruptions. Despite the "new normal" brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, recent studies show that the future still holds the potential to avail business performance opportunities to SMEs, and the hopes of managers for the years to come are reasonably high. Adopting a relationship-centric perspective, the book proposes a deeper analysis of the role of managerial relationship building and development and SMEs internationalization. In the networked economy, relationships are the invisible threads of the highly interconnected world. Either we call them connections, ties, bonds, or links, they are present everywhere marking the very essence of our lives, therefore claiming for wide consideration. Giving way to a stepwise screening of relationships and SMEs internationalization, the book is simultaneously addressed to scholars from different fields of study (i.e., international management, international business, international relationship marketing, etc.) and worldwide decision-makers (i.e., entrepreneurs and managers) interested in conducting smart business abroad. <!----> <!----> <!----> <!---->

Kolejnym krokiem cyfrowej transformacji jest przyjęcie sztucznej inteligencji (AI), nawet jeśli sama technologia wciąż ewoluuje. Niemniej jednak dyskusje na temat zalet i wad AI są żywe: menedżerowie znajdują się na pierwszej linii podejmowania decyzji dotyczących najlepszych sposobów wprowadzenia takich zmian. Jeśli korporacje są już zaznajomione ze sztuczną inteligencją, przynajmniej częściowo w przypadku niektórych procesów, małe i średnie przedsiębiorstwa (MŚP) stoją przed podwójną presją: nierównym stopniem dojrzałości cyfrowej, a także codziennymi ograniczeniami w zwiększaniu konkurencyjności. W szczególności MŚP z Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej znajdują się w skomplikowanych ramach, a przyjęcie sztucznej inteligencji, nawet jeśli jest trudne, może być jednym z rozwiązań umożliwiających postęp pod względem wydajności. Mimo wszystko ryzyko w takim podejściu musi być dokładnie rozważone. Opierając się na częściowo ustrukturyzowanym przeglądzie literatury przedmiotu, w niniejszym artykule omówiono główne zagrożenia, które menedżerowie MŚP w regionie Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej powinni zrozumieć w odniesieniu do sztucznej inteligencji, i wynikające z niej wyzwania związane z jej przyjęciem w biznesie. Końcowe rozważania i przyszłe dyskusje badawcze zamykają prace.